user guide

First steps

Cocôtte brings together the money and the organisation of a shared Cocôtte: expenses, a common kitty, invoices, reminders and tasks. Everyone sees the same thing, and the accounts settle themselves.

1. Create your account (first name, email address, password), then click the link we email you to confirm your address.
2. Create your Cocôtte: its name, its type (family, friends, flatmates…), its currency. You become a member automatically, with your household.
3. Invite the others from Members & shares: each guest gets a link, creates an account and joins the Cocôtte.
4. Set the shares: equal, or according to what each household owns (for example 60 / 40).
5. Add a first expense, or photograph an invoice with the Scanner.

Several Cocôttes? One account can manage several Cocôttes (the family house, the flatshare…). Switch with the selector at the top of the menu, or from My Cocôttes in your account.

Members & shares

This is where you decide who is in the Cocôtte and who pays which share.

• Households: a couple, a single person, a family. Accounts are settled between households.
• Owner households split every expense according to their share. Shares always add up to 100%.
• Third parties (grandparents, a handy uncle…) can pay costs and upload their invoices without being counted in the split: they are simply paid back.
• Within a household, the share can be split equally between its members, or in a custom way (for example 10% and 30% for a household owning 40%).

Inviting someone. Invite someone button: pick the person’s household (or create one), then email the link or paste it in a message. The link is valid for 14 days. Pending invitations are listed on the same page; you can cancel them.

Person without an account. A child, a neighbour who keeps the keys: add them as a person without an account to give them tasks or reminders, without them having to log in.

Dashboard

The Cocôtte’s front page, at a glance:

• the kitty balance (contributions minus what it paid);
• the Cocôtte’s shares and each household’s balance;
• latest transactions, upcoming reminders and open tasks;
• recent activity: who added or changed what.

The ＋ button adds an expense, a kitty contribution, a reminder or a task in one go.

Expenses & contributions

The list of all the Cocôtte’s money, with filters by month, category, household, tag or type.

• An expense: a bill paid for the Cocôtte. Say who paid it: a household (it advanced the money) or the kitty.
• A contribution: money paid by a household into the common kitty.

For each transaction: label, amount, date, supplier, category, tags, and the receipt (photo or PDF) if you have it.

Recurring transactions (the Simmerer). Insurance, electricity, each household’s monthly contribution: declare them once with their rhythm (every month, quarter, year…); Cocôtte adds them on the right day.

Other currencies. An invoice in dollars or pounds is converted at the European Central Bank rate of the day: the amount is marked “estimated” until you enter the amount actually charged.

Scanner

No more typing everything: Cocôtte “pecks” the information for you.

1. Invoice: photograph it flat, framed and well lit, or import the PDF you received by email.
2. Cocôtte reads the supplier, date, total amount and its currency, number and lines, then suggests a category and tags.
3. Check, correct if needed, choose who paid, then save. The invoice is filed with the transaction.

Bank statement: import your joint account’s statement (PDF or the bank’s CSV export). Cocôtte prepares every transaction that concerns the Cocôtte; tick the ones to keep, then confirm.

Calendar & reminders

The Cocôtte’s calendar: deadlines, appointments, maintenance to plan (chimney sweep, boiler check, property tax…).

• Each reminder has a date, optionally someone in charge and an expected amount.
• A reminder can come back every month or every year.
• Overdue reminders show in red, upcoming ones in orange.

Cock-a-doodle: every morning, the people concerned get an email with reminders that are due or overdue, and tasks coming up. On the 1st of the month, the Monthly Menu sums up the past month.

Tasks

The to-do list: change a bulb, call the plumber, turn the water off before winter.

• Assign a task to someone (with or without an account) and give it a deadline.
• Tick it when it’s done; you can reopen it.
• Tasks coming up are included in that person’s morning email.

Cost split

The page that answers the only question that causes rows: who owes how much to whom?

• Each household’s balance: positive, it paid more than its share; negative, it owes the others.
• Suggested transfers: the fewest transfers to bring everyone back to zero.
• Pay back from the kitty: if there’s money in the kitty, Cocôtte suggests paying back those who advanced money directly, with no transfer between you.
• Costs to pay back to third parties: what third parties advanced, kept separate.

Once the transfer is made (from your bank, as usual), click ✓ Record: the repayment is logged and balances are recalculated. The repayment history keeps everything.

Budget & forecast

• Budget by category: set a yearly amount (energy, works, insurance…) and track what has been spent.
• Planned expenses & quotes: note the big costs ahead (a roof, a painting quote) to plan for them.
• Month by month and last 12 months: how spending and contributions evolve.
• Spending by tag: what a given project cost (“kitchen 2026”, “wedding”…).

Categories & tags

Two ways to file transactions:

• Category: one per transaction (Energy, Works, Groceries…), with a colour and an icon. Used for budgets.
• Tags: as many as you like, to follow a project or an event across categories.

Create, rename, recolour or delete them on this page. Deleting a category doesn’t delete transactions: they simply become “uncategorised”.

Invoices & photos

All the Cocôtte’s receipts in one place: invoices, quotes, warranties, photos (a meter, water damage…). Find them by date, name or transaction; open, download, or attach them to an expense.

Log

The history of everything that happens in the Cocôtte: additions, changes, deletions, repayments, new members, with date and author. Handy to understand a balance that moved.

Settings

• The Cocôtte: name, currency.
• Emails & daily summary: who gets the morning email. The “Send me a test email” button checks that everything arrives.
• Data backup: download a full backup (all data and receipts) or the database only. Cocôtte also makes one every night on the server.

Plan & subscription

Each Cocôtte has its own subscription, paid once for the whole Cocôtte, whatever the number of people.

• Trial: 30 days free, no card needed.
• Plans: Duo (€2.99 a month), Family (€5.99), Big table (€9.99), monthly or yearly (about two months free).
• You can subscribe before the trial ends: the first payment only happens when the trial ends.
• Payment is handled by Stripe: Cocôtte never sees your card number.

Change plan (in your account → Subscription): switch from one plan to another, or from monthly to yearly, in one click. The change is immediate; the price difference is prorated and added to the next invoice.

What each plan includes: during the trial, 3 members and 10 receipts read in total; Duo, 2 members and 30 receipts read a month (no bank statements); Family, 10 members and 100 receipts a month; Big table, 20 members and 300 receipts a month. The receipt counter resets on the 1st of each month, and you can always enter things by hand.

Manage my subscription (in your account → Subscription): change card, download invoices, cancel. After cancelling, the Cocôtte stays open until the end of the paid period.

My account & security

• My profile: first name, language (French or English), email address (a confirmation link goes to the new address).
• Security: change password, log out of other devices, download all your data, delete your account.
• Forgotten password: from the login page; the emailed link is valid for one hour.
• The Cocôtte letter: news, now and then; unsubscribe in one click.

Your data is hosted in France, by OVH, and is never sold or shared.